Clarius Group LLC Sells 97 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Clarius Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 97 shares during the quarter. Clarius Group LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 175.6% during the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 460.9% in the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $255.00 price target (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $279.00 to $233.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $255.23.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total value of $117,020.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 45,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 12,309 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.65, for a total value of $2,925,233.85. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 322,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,712,707.05. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total value of $117,020.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 45,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,016 shares of company stock worth $7,176,180. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:AJG opened at $234.58 on Monday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $196.70 and a twelve month high of $256.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $244.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $238.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.68.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.63% and a return on equity of 18.49%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.54 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.60 dividend. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.05%.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.